From Rags To Reformation
by ordinededracul
Summary: What if Adana wasn't kidnapped for the Hutts, but for the Sith? Perhaps she was strong in the Force and it was her destiny to become a Jedi. All the while, a father-daughter type of bond comes to life between her and the Exile.
1. Six Years Later

**This is a story of the Old Republic, set six years after the events of KOTOR2. An alternate ending to the Jedi Exile's story, this tells of how the Exile (aka Cadon Salis) and his apprentice rebuild the Jedi Order and battle against the ambitions of a Sith that seeks to make the Exile's apprentice his own and destroy the Jedi for good.**

**NOTE: I do not own Star Wars, nor its characters and other products. All characters and products are owned by their creators/owners with their patents and rights.**

* * *

_I first saw her on Nar Shadaa. She was nine years old. I didn't think very much of her back then. Her mother had not paid the Overseer of the Refugees, and she was kidnapped soon afterward. After coming dangerously close to the dark side, I had been doing everything I could to help others, and this was no exception. I agreed to find this girl and see her back to her mother safely._

_I made my way to the office of the Overseer, a Quarren known as Saquesh. He informed me that it was his intention to sell the girl, whose name was Adana, to the Hutts on their home planet. When he spoke, I could have sworn he was hiding something, but I ignored it. I easily got him to release Adana by using the Force mind trick. After this, I located her in her holding cell, which was simply a storage room, and returned her to her mother, who showed extreme joy and gratitude that her daughter was returned safely. Little did I know that "safely" was not to last very long._

_A few days after this little incident, I had located Master Zez-Kai Ell, after a troublesome visit on Goto's yacht. We had just finished discussing our plan to rendezvous on Dantooine, when two of my newest Jedi assisants, Atton and Brianna, came running up to me. They quickly informed Master Ell and I that the Refugee Sector was under attack. When I told them to quickly make their way to Serroco section, Atton informed me that it was neither Serroco or Saquesh that was attacking- it was the Sith. After Atton told me that the rest of my crew & friends were on their way over, we quickly got into the airspeeder and made our way to the Refugee Sector._

_We arrived there to find chaos- sure enough, Sith warriors and a few Dark Lords were wreaking havoc upon the Refugees. Saquesh, the Serroco and other soldiers were busy battling the invaders, but the Sith were fighting back quite well. Drawing our light sabers, we quickly made out way into the heat of battle, cutting down a few warriors that tried to stop us. About forty five minutes pursued, and the skirmish had ended. A Dark Lord, who seemed to have lead the attack, retreated with an (apparent) apprentice and a few remaining Sith. Victory was ours, but it was costly. About twelve innocent refugees lay dead, as well as some Serroco men and a few soldiers. As I made my way around, healing those I could heal, I stumbled upon Nadaa, Adana's mother. She was wounded badly. I attempted to heal her wounds, but many of them were beyond help. I knew she was not far from death._

_She grasped my hand, and asked me if I would look after her daughter. Before I could say anything, she gave me a plea, informing me that the Sith had come to Nar Shadaa for Adana, and I was the only one who could protect her. When I asked her what she meant by the Sith coming for Adana, she gave me an even stronger plea, telling me that Saquesh could give me the information I needed. She told me that Adana was hiding in their living quarter, under a large mountain of blankets. Her final words were that Adana needed me, and then Nadaa passed away._

_I opened the door to their living quarters and looked around. In the far corner in the back were the blankets that Nadaa spoke of. I went over to the blankets and removed them. Adana screamed and put her hands up in defense, begging me not to hurt her. I told her that the killers were gone, and that she was safe. She got up, and looked around. Within fifteen seconds, Adana hung her head and assumed aloud that her mother had died. She was right, and there was no need in correcting her. I, along with me friends who were behind me, expected hysteria and unquenchable tears, but strangely, the girl simply sighed and asked with uncertainty "What am I going to do now?". I knelt in front of her and said, "Your mother asked me to take you with me. She said that these men came here for you."_

"_She was right." Adana responded. "I don't know why, they are after me, but during the fight, while we were trying to find a safe place, a man who was wearing a black cloak came up and tried to take my hand. He said I was coming with him. My mother tried to fight him, but one of his men came up and cut her with his vibroblades." She paused for a few moments, processing all of this in her head; then her voice became shaky and rushed. " I… I don't want to stay here! I _can't_ stay here! I know they'll come back, and I can't do anything. You have to help me! You're the only hope I have left! Can I go with you?" She looked up at me with the most frightened and uncertain face I had ever seen, tears silently running down her cheeks. I knew I could not leave this girl here alone. It would mean her death._

_I placed my hands on her shoulders. Reassuringly, I told her, _"_Your mother said that I could protect you. There is a reason that these men are looking for you, and I'm going to find out what it is." I told her. "To answer your question... yes, I am going to take you with me, and I'll make sure that you're safe. This is Brianna, and this is Bao-Dur." I said to her as I pointed out the Handmaiden and the Iridonian. I instructed the two of them, "See this young lady safely to the Ebon Hawk. Atton and I will join you shortly, and we'll leave immediately. We don't need the Sith coming after us."_

_Brianna extinguished her double-bladed lightsaber, as did Bao-Dur. Telling her that everything would be all right, Brianna gently put her arm around Adana, and they made their way to the airspeeder._

"_Atton, there's something that we need to find out from Saquesh." I said, looking up to the window to the office, where Saquesh was talking to his men. We made our way up to the Overseer, just as his men started to leave. With a frustrated sigh, he asked me "You again? What do you want this time?"_

_I quickly ignited my single-bladed lightsaber, its blue blade burning fiercely. Using the Force, I moved a table in front of the doors, barricading them. I pointed my lightsaber at Saquesh and warned him, "Don't even think about calling your men in- that will be your death." He nodded._

"_All right, Saquesh." I said. "There is something you did not tell me about Adana. What is the story with the young girl?"_

"_Adana__? I have no idea what you're talking abo-" he was quickly cut of by a flash of yellow- that yellow was Atton's lightsaber being pointed at him. "You'd better tell the truth, Saquesh." he growled._

"_Very well." Saquesh resigned. "When I kidnapped Adana, it was not for the Hutts. A Sith Lord, one known as Darth Vulgan, agreed to pay me fifty thousand credits for the girl. He said that he had been here before in secret, and had felt the Force flowing strongly through the girl. How could I say no to fifty thousand credits? And when they found out that I had released her, Vulgan said that he was coming to Nar Shadaa to get her himself. There was nothing I could have done! I'm lucky to be alive myself!"_

"_Look at the chaos they brought on this place, Saquesh! Is it worth the credits now?" I demanded. Saquesh stared at me blankly. He wasn't used to being lectured or chastised. With a sigh, I muttered "It's no matter. I've taken Adana into my care, and we're leaving shortly. Now, if you have any dispute with this, I'm sure our lightsabers can speak for us. And since _you're_ the Overseer, and since _you_ made a deal with the Sith, it's _your_ problem if they return. I suggest you get more soliders if that should happen."_

_Saquesh didn't protest, but let us go on our way. Even though it angered him, he knew we were right. We quickly departed from Nar Shadda, heading to Dantooine. It took a few days, but Adana quickly warmed up to us, as we warmed up to her. Kreia, of course, was irritated with her presence, but I simply stated that I would not leave a child as young as her alone, vulnerable to the Sith. The crew and myself told Adana to keep away from Kreia, that she was simply a grumpy elderly woman._

_As the weeks went by, and as we made our way from one planet to another, it became apparent that Adana was clearly fascinated by the ways of the Jedi. She watched in awe as we each practiced lightsaber duels with each other, meditated, and used the Force. She told us of how she had always been interested in the Jedi, how she used to listen closely to the stories of the Jedi that travelers would tell, and how she was fascinated when she met us. That was not all though. Much more than that, we also began to notice the Force flowing through Adana. Every day, we'd feel it stronger and stronger within her._

_It also didn't take long before Kreia confronted me, telling me that the reason that this Darth Vulgan wanted Adana, was because she was, indeeed, strong in the Force, and he believed that he could make a powerful apprentice out of her. Kreia suggested something that I never expected out of her- she stated that the dark side was in Adana's future, and that I should either kill her or leave her on another planet. I, however, had something else in mind._

_I went to the communications room, where I saw Adana sitting in a chair. She was holding and studying my lightsaber. "Adana." I called out. She looked up, and a look of embarrassment followed, afraid I would be upset with her for handling a lightsaber. "I'm sorry, Cadon. I didn't mean to mess with… I…I…"_

"_It's all right, Adana." I told her as I walked to the chair beside her and seated myself. "Adana, there's something I need to talk to you about, and it's very important that you listen." She nodded her head and I continued. "These people that were after you on Nar Shadaa are called the Sith. They're the-"_

"_The enemies of the Jedi." she answered. "The ones who use the evil side of the Force."_

"_You're right." I said. "And there's a reason that they are after you... you are very strong in the Force." Her eyes widened when I said that. That was something she was not expecting to hear. I continued, "And there is a Sith Lord that wants to find you and make you his apprentice."_

_"What! A Sith apprentice!_ _I'll never do that!" Adana said. "Never!"_

"_That's good to hear. However, it will not stop him from looking for you. He and the rest of the Sith are going to keep looking for you, and they won't give up until they find you."_

_"Then we need to do something, Cadon!" Adana exclaimed, almost in frustration._

"_You're right about that." I answered. "And I have an idea on what to do."_

"_What is it?" Adana asked._

_I asked her, "I can train you to become a Jedi. Would you like for me to do that?"_

_Her face brightened, and she smiled the biggest smile I'd seen on her face since she came with us. "Do you mean it? You'll train me?"_

"_Absolutely." I responded, putting my hand on her shoulders. "Now listen, Adana. Becoming a Jedi is hard work, and it won't be an easy task. But when you do become a Jedi, all of the hard work will pay off. Together, you and I can stop this Sith from taking you... and I sense that as a Jedi, you can make a big difference in the fate of the Jedi Order. "_

"_I'm a hard worker." Adana replied with strong sincerity. "And I'll do anything I can to help the Jedi Order, especially all of you. I know I'd be dead if you and your friends hadn't taken me. Besides... secretly, I've always wanted to be a Jedi."._

"_Then we have no time to lose." I told her with a smile. We began training that very same day._

…_That was six years ago. She's come a long way since then._

Cadon Salis came out of his train of thought as he watched his fifteen year old apprentice. They had been through much together, and he was reminiscing the past few years as his apprentice was now constructing her first lightsaber. He had trained her for six years now, showing her the ways of the Force. Like him, she was a Jedi Guardian, and easily mastered the art of lightsaber combat. He watched as Adana carefully put all the parts together. Once she was done, she turned around, carefully holding the hilt. She ignited it, the blade shining a bright blue from its cyan crystal.

"Excellent work, Adana." Cadon complimented as Adana firmly grasped the hilt in her hands. "Now, let's see how well you handle your first lightsaber."

With that, Cadon flipped the switches on two HK droids that were standing nearby. These droids had been in the Ebon Hawk for the past week, but Adana had no idea why. Now she knew- they were a test for this particular time. The two droids brought up their blaster rifles and fired. Adana quickly blocked the beams that came from the rifles. She quickly moved to one droid and swung her lightsaber, cutting the droid in half. She spun around and swung again, decapitating the remaining droid. As it fell, another shot came out of the blaster, but it was quickly blocked by the lightsaber once more. Adana paused and then extinguished the blade.

"So, that's why you bought those droids." Adana said to her master.

"Yes, and you did well." Cadon responded. "Fortunately, the droids were from a man who wanted to get rid of them quickly, so he gave me both of them for 40 credits. I figured that was a good way to test out your saber."

Adana chuckled and put her lightsaber on her belt. She told Cadon she was going to do some meditating and made her way to the Ebon Hawk's dormitory. Cadon went to the cockpit and sat beside Atton. When he had defeated Darth Traya, Cadon left Adana with Atton for some time and attempted to venture into the Unknown Regions in search of Revan. However, the trip was short lived, and after eight months, he returned and reunited with Atton and his apprentice. Together, they had been rebuilding the Jedi Order ever since. True, they had been in touch with the rest of their friends- Mira, Visas, Bao-Dur, Brianna- all of them had been contributing to rebuilding the Order, but Cadon knew that with Adana, things would become much easier. He sensed greatness within her, and he believed that she could- no, would- be a great help in reforming the Jedi Order.

But of course, there was the fact that Darth Vulgan was still out there, looking for them, and that would be a block in their plans. Since the time that Adana had joined them, they encountered Vulgan only one time on Ryloth, in which Cadon had defeated Vulgan's apprentice at that time. That had been three years ago, and they had not heard anything from the Sith Lord since. BUt they all knew he was still plotting to locate Adana.

"So, has she finished?" Atton inqured, referring to Adana and her lightsaber.

"Yes, just a minute or two ago." was Cadon's response.

"And how did she handle the droids?"

"Cut them both down in under fifteen seconds."

"Not bad for a first test. I can tell that it's gonna be nice having another skilled Jedi with us" Atton said. Since Cadon returned from his search for Revan, the three of them had been travelling together. They kept in touch with the others, but each of them stayed on the planet of their choice, doing whatever they could on that planet to rebuild the Jedi. "We're almost ready to jump to lightspeed, by the way." Atton added.

They were currently headed to Nar Shadaa to meet up with Marr. Visas had been living there for a few months now, after spending some time treading her homeworld of Katarr. In the time that she was on Nar Shadaa, Visas had gained some information about a few Jedi Knights that were rumored to be on Nar Shadaa, and they had agreed to help her search for them.

However, this would be Adana's first time back on Nar Shadaa ever since the Sith killed her mother and attempted to take her. Adana was strong, but even Cadon did not know how she would react to being there. There was only one way to find out, though. They would be at Nar Shadaa within a few days.

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**Well, there's the first chapter. I had been deciding on what I could do for a Star Wars fanfic for some time, and the idea came to me as I played KOTOR2. I decided to put more story into the character of Adana. Hopefully it's not too bad of a story.**


	2. Reunion On Nar Shadaa

******NOTE: I do not own Star Wars, nor its characters and other products. All characters and products are owned by their creators/owners with their patents and rights.**

* * *

Darth Vulgan was seated in his chair on his starship, the Requiem, awaiting for his Sith warriors. He had instructed two of his men to travel the galaxy and locate the girl known as Adana. For six years he had tried to get a hold of the girl, and for six years, nothing had come out of it. Nothing except the loss of his former apprentice on Ryloth, thanks to that damned Jedi Exile who had to protect Adana. If it weren't for him, Vulgan would have a better apprentice.

Nonetheless, he did appreciate his current apprentice (a Zeltron named Juba), who was skilled in both combat and manipulation. However, this Adana was extremely strong in the Force, stronger than himself, possibly. And he wanted her as his apprentice. He wanted all Jedi dead. Sure, many others may have said the same thing, but Vulgan was extremely serious about that subject. It was his goal, and it was the reason he was trying to get to Adana in the first place. If he could persuade her to the dark side, he believed that destroying the Jedi would be a relatively easy task.

Vulgan a knock on his chamber door. By the distinct two knocks, he knew it was Juba. "You may enter." Vulgan said. Juba entered and knelt before his master. He arose once Vulgan signaled him to rise. "Master, Yahn and Thale have returned." Juba reported, referring to the two Sith that had been sent to hunt Adana. "Bring them in." Vulgan ordered in his vibrant, deep voice. Juba bowed quickly and turned around, signaling the two humans awaiting at the door before taking his usual spot at the left of his master's chair.

Yahn and Thale entered nervously. They did not have anyone beside them which led to Vulgan's irritancy early. The two of them knelt, not facing their overlord yet. "You may rise." Vulgan instructed. The two did so, looking at Vulgan now. He looked extremely menacing. Vulgan was a human, like themselves, but there was something inhuman about him. And the fact that he wore the hood on his robe up most of the time made him even more sinister. Not to mention, he had a monstrous temper, which was quickly ignited at the first sign of any type of failure.

"I can see that you did not capture Adana. Have I not given you enough time?" Vulgan inquired, tapping his fingers on the armrest. The two warriors remained silent, both of them hesitant to speak. "Have. I. Not. Given. You. Enough. Time?" their master repeated, making it obvious that he wanted an answer, and quickly.

"Yes, my lord, you have." Thale answered, looking down at his feet. "Face me, Thale." Vulgan's voice came loud and demanding. The Sith did so, forcing himself to look at the dissatisfaction on his lord's face. "If I have given you enough time," Vulgan continued, not moving a muscle in his body, making the tension even worse, "Then why isn't the girl here on the ship?"

Yan chimed in nervously "My lord, if I may?" Vulgan nodded. "We have searched everywhere, but we have not been able locate her." That made Vulgan even more agitated. "**I am aware of that**." he stated in a raised voice. "What I want to know is _why_ you have not located her."

The warrior looked blankly at him, his mind frantically searching for a reason that would not further anger Vulgan. The blank face, however, did not help. "You have your question, now answer it." the Sith Lord demanded.

"I…I'm afraid, my lord…." Yan stuttered. "That it is difficult to locate one person in an entire galaxy. We've searched everywhere, but…" Yan's voice trailed off as Vulgan growled, not wanting to hear the same answer again. "With all due respect, my lord, we are but two people."

"You're Sith." Vulgan spat. "You are supposed to be mighty, powerful, and capable. I gave you seven months. And you know that she travels with the Exile. If they visit a planet, their presence is spoken of. It should not have been that difficult of a task."

"Lord Vulgan," Thale said, trying to manage get Yan and himself of this situation. "We didn't even search all the planets you instructed. It-" He was cut off by Vulgan's fist pounding the armrest and getting to his feet. His eyes flared with a livid expression and his breathing was slow and heavy.

"Repeat what you just told me." Vulgan ordered in a dangerously low voice. Like Yan a few moments ago, Thale was silent. He had spoken without thinking, and it had infuriated Vulgan. "I want to be sure of what I heard. Repeat it." Vulgan ordered through clenched teeth. With a sigh, Thale said. "We did not search all of the planets you instructed us to search."

Vulgan crossed his arms and spoke in a low voice, his wrath obviously about to erupt. "I gave you an order, and you did not follow it. I was going to let you off with a simple warning. I understood that it is difficult to search every planet, and you would not have been chastised for that. But I instructed that you at least search Telos, Nar Shadaa, Coruscant, and Onderon. And you just told me you have not searched all of the planets that I ordered you to search. You did not follow orders, and that calls for punishment." the Sith Lord paced for a few moments. The two warriors grew even more tense, knowing that they faced a harsh chastisement. Yan worked up a bit of courage and spoke "Forgive us, Lord V-"

His frustration reaching its peak, Vulgan roared, whipped around and struck the two with a heavy blast of Force lightning, causing both warriors to crumble. He turned his head to Juba. "Take these two and put them in the holding cells. I'll think of a punishment when I have cleared my thoughts." Juba got the attention of another crew member, and they dragged the warriors to the quarters where the cells were located. Juba knew that these two were in for a rough time- anyone who served Darth Vulgan long enough knew for a fact that when needed time to think of a punishment, that meant that the chastisement received would be horrid.

* * *

The Ebon Hawk slowly touched down on the landing pad. After four days of traveling, the trio had finally arrived at Nar Shadaa. Cadon made his way out of the communications room; he had just finished contacting Visas, letting her know that they would be arriving at her quarters soon. He walked to the starboard dormitory, where Adana was napping. Upon his arrival, her eyes slowly opened. She sat up, stretching and asked "Have we landed?"

"Yes, we're here." Cadon answered his apprentice, still wondering how she would react to being on her home world for the first time since they met. When they had first met, Adana had a feisty attitude, but as she grew older and became stronger, she became a much more calm, mature and sophisticated young woman. "Have you talked with Visas yet?" Adana inquired as she donned her brown robe over her tunic. "I just finished, she's expecting us. Atton's heading outside." Cadon said. This would also be the first time seeing Visas in person ever since Traya had been defeated on Malachor. Adana clipped her lightsaber on her belt and said she was ready to go. They joined Atton outside and made their way to where Visas was staying. Upon reaching her quarters, Atton knocked twice. After a few moments, Visas answered the door. "Atton." she chimed. "It's good to see you again. Please, come in."

Atton went inside. Visas greeted Cadon with a friendly embrace. "It's been a while, Cadon." she said. "It's great to see you." Cadon answered with a grin. Visas looked behind Cadon. "Is that little Adana?" Visas asked. "Not so little any more." Cadon chuckled. "My, you've grown fast." Visas commented, smiling. "The last time I saw you was when you were nine years of age, aspiring to be a Jedi. Now you're fifteen and you are a Jedi."

They followed Visas inside, where she offered them a seat. After they had all gotten comfortable, the Miraluka got right down to the matter at hand. "It was about two weeks ago." she informed the trio. "I had heard there was a mugger who was robbing people all over the Refugee Sector. Apparently, he had made a mistake of robbing a couple of travelers who were staying here for a few weeks. They said that he threatened the two with a blaster, but they drew lightsabers and cut him down. After the incident with the Sith six years ago, the Refugee Sector has become much like Khoonda- many people here do not like the Jedi. I myself have managed to keep my identity as a Jedi hidden, and I do not know how high the risk for a Jedi is right now. But, if we're to rebuild the Order, we need all the help we can get."

"Any idea where they might be?" Cadon asked. "Yes." was the answer from Visas. "I've also heard talk that people have seen two men wearing Jedi Robes in the Corellian Sector. We'll take an airspeeder there in a little while. For now, let us rest. I'm sure you are weary from your traveling.

As they rested, Cadon and Adana's mind were set on one thing momentarily: in order to get to the airspeeder to reach the Corellian Sector, that meant that they would have to pass through the Refugee Sector, the place where the Sith had attacked six years earlier.


End file.
